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Swimming Pool Permit in East Helena, Montana

Required for construction/installation of a swimming pool within East Helena city limits. East Helena is one of the few Montana jurisdictions DLI-certified for Swimming Pool (SP) permitting in addition to Building (B), so this permit is issued locally by the Department of Building & Safety under the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC), rather than being routed to the state. No dedicated pool-specific application form or fee line distinct from the general Construction Permit Application was found published by the city.

Verified 2026-07-03 · Source

When you need this permit

  • Construction Permit Application submitted to the Department of Building & Safety, since East Helena is DLI-certified for Swimming Pool (SP) permitting within city limits
  • Reviewed against the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC) as statewide-adopted (effective June 11, 2022) and locally enforced by East Helena's certified building official
  • Site plan showing pool location, setbacks, and any required barriers/fencing per the ISPSC
  • No dedicated East Helena-specific pool application form, fee schedule, or barrier/fencing amendment was found published separately from the general Construction Permit Application after checking the Planning/Zoning/Building page and linked PDFs

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Swimming Pool Permit FeeNo pool-specific fee line was found published by the City of East Helena. The general Building Permit valuation-based formula is presumed to apply, but a pool-specific figure was not independently confirmed. Contact City Hall, (406) 227-5321, for the current fee.
Not published — contact the department

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Swimming Pool Permit permit actually take in East Helena?

Anonymous — one question, no email. Answers are combined and only shown once at least 5 people have reported.

Inspection process

  1. 1

    Final Inspection

    Pool construction and any required barriers verified against the ISPSC and approved plans

See the full East Helena inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • East Helena is one of only a handful of Montana jurisdictions certified for Swimming Pool (SP) permitting locally — confirm this permit is handled by City Hall directly, not the state DLI, since East Helena appears on the DLI certified-jurisdictions list with 'SP' alongside 'B'.
  • No dedicated pool-specific application, fee, or barrier-code amendment was found published separately by the city; this is a genuine gap in the city's public documentation, not an inferred figure — confirm current requirements directly with the Department of Building & Safety.
  • No review timeline is published for pool permits specifically. The MCA 50-60-106(2)(c) 10-working-day figure applies to the single-family-dwelling construction checklist mechanism, not explicitly to pools; East Helena's site and forms do not state a pool-specific turnaround.

Frequently asked questions

East Helena requires a swimming pool permit for: Construction Permit Application submitted to the Department of Building & Safety, since East Helena is DLI-certified for Swimming Pool (SP) permitting within city limits; Reviewed against the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC) as statewide-adopted (effective June 11, 2022) and locally enforced by East Helena's certified building official; Site plan showing pool location, setbacks, and any required barriers/fencing per the ISPSC; No dedicated East Helena-specific pool application form, fee schedule, or barrier/fencing amendment was found published separately from the general Construction Permit Application after checking the Planning/Zoning/Building page and linked PDFs. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of East Helena Department of Building & Safety — city-certified for Building (B) and Swimming Pool (SP) only; Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau at (406) 227-5321 before starting work.

East Helena does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of East Helena Department of Building & Safety — city-certified for Building (B) and Swimming Pool (SP) only; Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau at (406) 227-5321 for current turnaround.

You'll need: Construction Permit Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

East Helena requires 1 inspection(s) for a swimming pool permit, in order: Final Inspection. Schedule each through City of East Helena Department of Building & Safety — city-certified for Building (B) and Swimming Pool (SP) only; Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau ((406) 227-5321).

Apply through City of East Helena Department of Building & Safety — city-certified for Building (B) and Swimming Pool (SP) only; Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau at 306 E. Main Street, PO Box 1170, East Helena, MT 59635. Phone: (406) 227-5321, email: building@easthelenamt.us. Office hours: City Hall, 306 E. Main Street, East Helena, MT 59635 (Administration Department, general questions: (406) 227-5321); Building Official/LEAP staff in Room 201 of City Hall, (406) 457-8583. Official information: https://easthelenamt.us/coeh/planning-zoning-building/.

East Helena, Montana has adopted: Montana has a mandatory statewide building code administered by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry (DLI) Building Codes Bureau, amended by the Administrative Rules of Montana (ARM) Title 24, Chapter 301. Cities, counties, and towns may become 'certified' to locally administer permitting and inspection for all or part of the code (building, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, swimming pool, WUI, etc.); non-certified trades within a certified jurisdiction, and all trades in non-certified areas, fall under direct state administration by the DLI Building Codes Bureau. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Certified City, County and Town Programs and Current Codes pages (bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits).; East Helena is a Montana DLI-certified jurisdiction for Building (B) and Swimming Pool (SP) ONLY within East Helena city limits — Colin Thomas is the certified building official of record, (406) 594-6322. East Helena is NOT certified for Electrical (E), Plumbing (P), or Mechanical (M); those permits are issued directly by the state DLI Building Codes Bureau for all addresses within East Helena city limits. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, 'CITY CODES BUILDING OFFICIAL PHONE JURISDICTION' certified-jurisdictions PDF (https://bsd.dli.mt.gov/_docs/building-codes-permits/certified-city.pdf), updated 04/22/2026 — East Helena row reads 'B, SP / Colin Thomas / 594-6322 / City Limits'; independently cross-confirmed against the DLI 'Certified City, County and Town Programs' HTML page (bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits/certified-government), same B, SP result. Legend on the PDF: B = Building, P = Plumbing, M/G = Medical Gas, E = Electrical, M = Mechanical, SP = Pool, W = WUI (Wildland-Urban Interface).; The City of East Helena's own Construction Permit Application confirms the split directly: 'Separate permits are required for building, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work,' and the city's Planning/Zoning/Building webpage links its 'Electrical Permits' quick-link directly to the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau's electrical-permits page (bsd.dli.mt.gov/Building-Codes-Permits/Permit-Information/electrical-permits), not to any city-issued electrical form. Source: City of East Helena Construction Permit Application (PDF), easthelenamt.us/PDF/building_permit.pdf; City of East Helena Planning/Zoning/Building page, easthelenamt.us/coeh/planning-zoning-building/.; 2021 International Building Code (IBC) — statewide edition effective June 11, 2022, referenced directly on the City of East Helena Construction Permit Application (IBC Sec. 109.3 and 109.3.8 quoted verbatim on the inspection-requirements side of the form) and enforced locally by the city's own DLI-certified building official. Source: City of East Helena Construction Permit Application (PDF).; 2021 International Residential Code (IRC) — statewide edition effective June 11, 2022; the City of East Helena's Residential One- and Two-Family Dwellings Plan Submittal Requirements document cites IRC Section R301 and IRC Section R602.10 directly for structural/lateral-bracing plan-review purposes. Source: City of East Helena Residential Plan Submittal Requirements (PDF), easthelenamt.us/PDF/COEH_BuildingPlanSubmittalInfo_2021.pdf.; 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) — statewide edition effective June 11, 2022; East Helena's Plan Submittal Requirements require insulation R-values for foundations, walls, and roofs to be shown on submitted plans. Source: City of East Helena Residential Plan Submittal Requirements (PDF); Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau Current Codes page.; 2021 International Existing Building Code (IEBC), 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC), and 2017 ICC A117.1 Accessibility Standard — statewide editions effective June 11, 2022, applicable within East Helena as the locally-enforced editions for the Building and Swimming Pool trades the city is certified for. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Current Codes page, bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits/current-codes.; 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC), 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC), 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), and 2020 National Electrical Code (NEC) all apply within East Helena city limits as the statewide-adopted editions (effective June 11, 2022) but are administered directly by the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau (Helena), not the City of East Helena, because East Helena holds no local certification for those trades. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Current Codes page; DLI Building Codes Bureau Electrical/Plumbing/Mechanical Permits pages.. Local amendments apply — see the East Helena overview page for the full list.

The City of East Helena Department of Building & Safety issues swimming pool permits locally, since East Helena is Montana DLI-certified for Swimming Pool (SP) permitting within city limits (per the DLI's certified-jurisdictions list: 'East Helena — B, SP'). This is unlike most small Montana cities, which route pool permits to the state.

Sources & verification

Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-07-03.

Fees, timelines, and adopted codes are researched from each jurisdiction's published records — see how we verify. Requirements change and vary by project, so always confirm the current details with the East Helena building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.